Accomack County recently issued the following announcement.
Applications are to be submitted by email to administration@co.accomack.va.us by 11:59 p.m. on March 18, 2022.
All required forms are located at the bottom of this page. Please select and complete each fillable .pdf form, save it to your computer, and then submit via email.
Please note that the County Administrator's Office is open Monday - Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. and staff will only be available during those times.
Purpose
Most of Accomack County is classified as a childcare desert meaning there is an insufficient supply of childcare providers in the area to satisfy the demand for services. Many families lack access to high-quality, affordable childcare particularly those families with low to moderate incomes. The purpose of the County of Accomack’s Child Care Start-up and Expansion Grant Program is to incentivize new or existing childcare providers to increase childcare capacity for classes, populations, households, or geographic areas in Accomack County negatively impacted by the pandemic.
For new providers, the program offers cash grants to offset costs associated with opening a new childcare facility. Eligible costs for new providers include property acquisition, property modifications, leasehold improvements, rent and/or equipment needed to become licensed by the Virginia Department of Education or to comply with provisions of Virginia Code §22.1-289.031 for those new providers who are exempt from licensure requirements.
For existing providers, the program offers cash grants to expand their current program to serve more children. Eligible costs include building modifications to existing facilities, acquisition of new facilities, leasehold improvements, equipment or supplies necessary to meet Virginia Department of Education licensure requirements or to comply with provisions of Virginia Code §22.1-289.031 for those existing providers who are exempt from licensure requirements.
Start-up costs such as wages, training, insurance, rent, etc. are also eligible costs for new providers and existing providers including those that seek to expand their hours of operation to provide care during nontraditional hours.
Eligible Applicants
Eligible applicants include individuals, nonprofits, religious organizations, for-profit businesses, and community based organizations including existing providers located in the County. All applicants must:
- Be currently licensed by the Virginia Department of Education (Virginia Code §22.1-289.011) or will agree to become licensed with six months of the start of the proposed program, or
- Be exempt from licensure requirements because of an affiliation with a religious institution (but subject to the requirements of Virginia Code §22.1-289.031).
All applicants must also agree to provide equal access to all children regardless of disability, race, national origin, gender, sexual orientation or other characteristics of the child or the child’s parents or guardians. Employers who provide childcare services exclusively to their employees are ineligible unless the employer agree to open enrollment to the public as a condition of receiving the grant.
Applicants with multiple sites are eligible to submit one application per site.
Source of Grant Funds
Grants awarded from the Child Care Start-Up and Expansion Grant Program are funded from Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) established by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. All awards are subject to compliance with the SLFRF statute, SLFRF Award Terms and Conditions, and U.S. Treasury’s Final Rule. Sub-recipient monitoring is required.
Grantees will be required to retain documentation of all uses of grant funds, including but not limited to payroll time records, invoices, and/or sales receipts and must report on all uses of funds. Such documentation shall be provided to the County at intervals determined by the County and subject to audit.
Program Requirements
The funding source for this program, SLFRF, dictates that grants funds used to improve access to childcare be specifically targeted to assist classes, populations, communities or households negatively impacted by the pandemic.
In order to satisfy this stipulation, proposed uses of program funds must satisfy at least one of the following criteria:
- Requested funds will be used to provide services from a physical location within a HUD Qualified Census Tract (QCT). A QCT is defined as any census tract in which 50% of households have an income less than 60% of the Area Median Gross Income. Currently there are two QCTs (904.00 and 908.00) in Accomack County which begin on the seaside of the County from the Northampton County line extending north to the village of Assawoman.
- Requested funding will be used primarily to benefit families living within a QCT.
- Eligibility criteria for the proposed program or service are such that the primary intended beneficiaries earn less than 300 percent of the 2021 Federal Poverty Guidelines.
Only proposed programs that increase local childcare availability by providing an additional 10 or more childcare slots, through increased capacity or expanded hours, at the proposed location will be considered
Maximum Award Amounts
Application scores will dictate individual awards. The total amount of funding available for all awards is limited to $600,000 and the maximum award amount is $150,000.
Timeframes
January 28, 2022: Grant application made available on County Website
March 18, 2022: Deadline to Apply/Application review period begins.
April 8, 2022: Award Selection and Agreement Negotiation
March 3, 2021 - June 30, 2023: Period for which costs can be incurred by the grantee and claimed under the grant.
Application Due Date
Applications are to be submitted by email to administration@co.accomack.va.us by 11:59 p.m. on March 18, 2022. Please note that the County Administrator’s Office closes at 5:00 p.m., therefore, staff will not be available to provide technical support after this time.
Selection Process
All applicants are required to complete and submit an application, along with other mandatory forms. Two letters from the community supporting the applicant’s ability to provide high-quality childcare are also required to be submitted along with the application package. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
The application package will be scored on a weighted points-based system according to the following criteria.
1. Program Description and Applicant Qualifications (0-40pts)
2. Community Impact (0-25pts)
3. Projected Income and Expenses/Proposed Fee Schedule Plan (0-25pts)
4. Budget & Cost/Benefit (0-10pts)
The maximum score is 100 points, with a minimum of 70 points needed to be eligible for grant funding. Applicants ranking highest in competitive order shall be selected for a grant subject to the amount of grant funding appropriated by the Accomack County Board of Supervisors. No applicant is entitled to a grant and the approval of a grant, including the amount thereof and any conditions attached thereto, are within the discretion of the County Administrator.
Recipients of the grant shall be required to sign an agreement with the County for the proper use of the funds and shall be subject to clawback provisions in the event of misrepresentation, failure to obtain a state license, or other non-qualifying factor, or misuse of funds.
Application Submission Checklist
| Complete and Sign Application | |
| Program Description & Applicant Qualifications Form | |
| Community Impact Form | |
| Projected Program Income and Expenses Form | |
Budget Form
| |
| Two letters of support from the community on official letterhead | |
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